Dampak Penggunaan Media Sosial terhadap Kecemasan Sosial Mahasiswa Fakultas Ilmu Sosial dan Ilmu Politik USU

Abstract

The use of social media has become an integral part of the daily lives of students at the Faculty of Social and Political Sciences, University of Sumatera Utara, influencing the ways they communicate and interact. This study aims to explain the positive and negative impacts of social media use and to understand its relationship with the emergence of social anxiety symptoms among students. This study also aims to understand how students’ social media habits shape their interaction patterns in everyday social life. This research employed a descriptive qualitative method through in-depth interviews, observations, and documentation. The findings indicate a relationship between the intensity of social media use and social anxiety symptoms, particularly fear of negative evaluation, tension in social situations, and a tendency to withdraw. Other symptoms include avoiding face-to- face interactions, lack of self-confidence, difficulties in direct communication, and increased concern over others’ judgments. The findings also show that social media provides positive impacts, such as easy access to learning materials, faster information dissemination, and broader communication networks. However, negative impacts were also identified, including sleep disturbances, excessive use, decreased direct social interaction, and increasing dependence on social media. Students with high usage duration tend to exhibit stronger symptoms of social anxiety. In addition, Instagram tends to trigger self-comparison and self-image concerns, while TikTok creates pressure to follow trends and appear attractive. These findings provide an understanding of how social media use shapes students’ interaction patterns and contributes to the emergence of social anxiety symptoms, and may serve as a reference for students to use social media more wisely.